Artist Profile: Hanna Silver

July 2013 saw my long awaited follow up release EP. Titled “Let’s Visit The Seaside”, the 5 instrumental tracks follow a common theme of ocean life.

The tracks are titled: Emerging from the shell, Crab Dances (for which a video has been made), Starfish in the Night, and Dolphins and Ripples at my feet. The work was recorded entirely in Hanna’s home with her collection of vintage synthesizers. Much of the work was improvised, whilst other parts were slaved over, to ensure they were beautifully composed.

There are 2 concepts in the EP. First is the one already mentioned – the story matter. The second is the technique with which the pieces have been produced. I set a challenge for myself in my songwriting and producing – to be limited to just melody and accompaniment, but to see how many different synthesizer voices could be used to voice the same melody. Very similar to how someone sits down to orchestrate a piece – should the violins and oboe play the melody together? How about trumpet, cello and glockenspiel? How many voices is too many, and which are the important ones for the listener to be aware of?

The challenge set was an interesting one and set the path of sound for this EP.

‘Dolphins’ features a drumbeat composed by The Moose, who also played guitars on several tracks. The EP has been sensitively mixed by Josh Abrahams, a fellow collector of vintage synthesizers. It was mastered by Joe Carra at Crystal Mastering, and the artwork wasdone by Adrian Elton. The front cover of the EP will feature an artwork created by me and my grandfather, Samek Silver, in 1989.

The video for Crab Dances was filmed in April. I conceptualised it, showing me her dancing like a modern crab in an 80s leotard. (What else could be for a piece titled Crab Dances??) Choreographed by Brooke Stamp and directed and filmed by Edwin Tejoz, the feature of the video is the mobile crab claws made of cardboard, custom made for me by Josh Spiegel from Box Wars. Edwin conceptualised a unique way of filming the video, one which should be seen rather than described.

Funding for the release and video came from a successful crowd funding campaign on Pozible.com. With 44 generous supporters, I reached my goal amount in just 10 days. Their support has warmed my heart, and renewed my faith in the dying music industry.

The EP will be available for listening and purchase on iTunes, Google Play and Bandcamp, and available on Compact Disc from me in person and in boutique record stores. The video is available for viewing at http://youtube.com/astrobic .

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